Woodworking NetworkWith the Softwood Lumber Agreement in tatters and inventories shrunk, U.S. lumber futures prices are spiking, threatening the U.S. homebuilders' business momentum. Fires spread across the province this month, and lumber wholesalers had to rely on inventory, say analysts — a supply already being tapped as a result of the trade spat over softwood lumber trade between the U.S. and Canada. The Softwood Lumber Agreement between the countries expired in 2015, and a one year grace period ended in October 2016.READ MORE

FPSEarly registration closes Wednesday, Aug. 9, for the 20th International Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation of Wood Symposium, which will be held in Madison, Wisconsin, Sept. 12-15. The symposium will be hosted by the USDA Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory (FPL) and is co-sponsored by the Forest Products Society (FPS) and the International Union of Forestry Research Organizations (IUFRO). This symposium is a forum for those involved in nondestructive testing and evaluation of wood, wood-based products and structures.READ MORE

Surface & PanelDuring a recent meeting with the North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and representatives of local authorities, Michael Egger and Walter Schiegl of EGGER Group Management Technology/Production announced plans to build a wood-based materials plant in Lexington, North Carolina. The project implementation is scheduled to take place in several stages, the first being the construction of a chipboard plant with coating capacities.
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WBZ-TVAuthorities said the flames that destroyed a Waltham, Massachusetts, apartment complex over the weekend were able to tear through the building so quickly because of its wood-frame construction. Five buildings were reduced to charred debris in the fire, which began around 4 a.m. Sunday. The complex off Elm Street was still under construction, so nobody was inside at the time.READ MORE

Woodworking NetworkThe world's largest producer of wood pellets released its latest proprietary Track & Trace forestry data to a sustainable and transparent supply chain. These data are another key tool for measuring and demonstrating Enviva's sustainability practices throughout the Southeastern United States. READ MORE

Wildlife Conservation Society via Phys.orgCentral America's largest remaining forests are disappearing at a precipitous rate due to illegal cattle ranching, oil palm plantations, and other human-related activities, all of which are putting local communities and the region's wildlife species at high risk.READ MORE

Climate CentralA Nebraska-sized chunk of the world's forests was decimated in 2015 because of wildfire, logging and expanding palm oil plantations, according to a new study. The loss is part of a continuing trend of deforestation that could have devastating implications for the climate. About 49 million acres of forest disappeared worldwide in 2015, mainly in North America and the tropics, putting the year's global deforestation level at its second-highest point since data gathering began in 2001. In all, the globe lost 47 percent more forested land in 2015 than it did 16 years ago, according to the study by Global Forest Watch.READ MORE

Penn State University via ScienceDailyVast swaths of Pennsylvania forests were clear-cut circa 1900 and regrowth has largely been from local native plant communities, but a team of researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences has found that invasive, non-native plants are making significant inroads with unconventional natural gas development.READ MORE

Biomass MagazineThe U.S. Forest Service has awarded a $250,000 grant to the Center for the Study of the Force Majeure, a research center based in the Arts Division at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC). Founded by Newton and Helen Mayer Harrison, research professors in UCSC's Digital Arts and New Media Program (DANM), the Center for the Study of the Force Majeure brings together artists and scientists to design ecosystem-adaptation projects in critical regions around the world to respond to climate change. READ MORE

MongabayDr. Michael Painter, a senior technical advisor at Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and Dr. David Wilkie, executive director for the WCS Conservation Measures and Communities program, write: "Intact forests are among the few places on earth where native trees and animals can fulfill their ecological roles outside the influence of industrial humankind. Some interpret 'intact' to mean absent the influence of people, but people have lived within forests the world over for millennia and we are only beginning to understand how they have — and continue to — influence them."READ MORE

Woodworking NetworkWhen promoting your services, the marketing and advertising tactics you choose to employ have a significant impact on your business. In a highly competitive home improvement market, strategic advertising campaigns and marketing materials are key to winning new business and turning them into loyal customers. READ MORE

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